Listening to your intuition: professional or unprofessional?

What is intuition? What even is professional? Why do we condemn the one, while the other is just as much of an open term as the other? Having worked in a start-up at the beginning of my career and following it up with a bigger sized marketing agency, I know my way around the corporate world. Enough to say, that I don‘t like it. It feels more like a cage than anything else. And when I broke free, went freelance and started addressing my own clients, I had to confront myself with some very intriguing questions. The main one being: what in actuality is professional?

While working in a startup with obligatory, daily office visits, I had to confront myself with that same question each morning. Down to my hair, outfit, make-up, purse. But of course it didn‘t stop at appearance. When making decisions, writing texts, creating designs, talking with clients, the simple choice of every day words, it all got dissected and reduced to: was this interaction „professional“ enough? But what on earth is professional? After all, it is a very broad term. But even with that broadness, a huge number of people will likely have a very specific image in mind. Might I dare to make a guess? Someone in a suit or at least a button up shirt with suit like pants or a pencil skirt. No sneakers – dress shoes or high heels. Combed back hair or a tight, slicked back ponytail. And a briefcase. Possibly glasses.

That is the generally understood appearance of someone „professional“. But what if, professionalism wasn‘t a dresscode. Or not even the current behavioural code? What if, unthinkable things like listening to your intuition was part of being professional?

Only quite recently I was confronted with that very question. Let me set the scene for you: I write and design a newsletter for one of my clients, including the content planning that naturally comes with it. Often, these content plans are set months in advance. And at the time, when the topics get decided, the plan makes sense. But plans change. Topics and content that has been set weeks or months in advance, might not be fitting anymore when the publishing time comes. Anyone working in a business, for a business or owns a business, knows that things are ever so fast changing. So when it came down to writing the following months newsletters according to the set content plan, it simply didn‘t feel aligned with my clients business anymore. The wording wasn‘t right, the message didn‘t fit. And this was purely based on a feeling. I was contemplating at the time, if I should even bring this up to my client or if I should just stick to the original plan. After all, how was I supposed to explain to my client that my “intuition” was telling me, that we should make some changes in the content plan? Nevertheless, I did the unthinkable. I called my client and told them exactly that: it no longer felt right. I proposed a new topic. One that felt more aligned with their business, with their target audience, with their brand. I also brought up the suggestion that if they wanted me to stick to the original proposal, that I’d work that angle as well and reasoned the positives and negatives. To my surprise, they fully agreed. And even further, they thanked me for bringing this up and that the new topic aligned way better with the brand and its message.

Considering all this, does it now make the behavior professional or unprofessional? And whose opinion matters more on the topic? The one of „professionals“ doing the work that would likely call this behaviour highly unprofessional? Or the opinion of the client receiving the finished work?

In retrospect, what the client appreciated, likely wasn‘t even the whole „ouh you listened to your intuition, that is so cool“ but rather „wow, you openly communicated your doubts and didn‘t try to sugar coat anything and came prepared with a back-up“. Which would mean, what the client appreciated wasn‘t the intuition at all. As a matter of fact, that point might have passed them by completely. But what they appreciated was honesty. Plain and simple, right? No! In my entire employeed career, I was never allowed or able to tell a client „the truth“. Even if there was a clear mistake made on the side of the agency, it needed to be sugar coated and covered up in some way, because telling the truth, apparently, isn‘t professional either.

Now, to all those who have been fuming and who‘s toes have been curling while reading, I ask you directly: how is anyone supposed to take „professionalism“ seriously anymore if basic human courtesy – like being honest – doesn‘t seem to be included in the term? What does it matter if that honesty was based on intuition? Why do we damn our own gut feelings as unreliable?

To answer the initial question: Yes. I absolutely do believe that listening to your intuition doesn‘t at all equal out being professional. As long as you are open with your clients and provide reasonable options, your clients will thank you for your honesty which they do not get from big “professional” corporations.